Quick Hello & Goodbye...

Goodbye to the Philippines, that is & a hello to you all after several days' break. I've been diving, traveled to Manila, danced some more and will tell all when I have a better connection. Right now, I'm heading out tomorrow and will be back stateside on the 6th. More stories to come.

a regular travelog entry, complete with missed connections, improvisation, and beautiful scenery

The plan was simple: Jerome, Arvin, Gwyneth & I would take a ferry to a public beach resort and spend the night. Arvin preferred a tent to a hut, so J. would pick one up on his way over to meet me. Nothing is ever that simple though. First, J&I thought we should go first thing in the morning, but A. is a DI (dance instructor) so he works until 2 in the morning. I received a text (on my phone. -- for those who have not been to asia in the last 5 years) at 3:30 in the morning asking what they had to bring and if we could leave after 1pm. I said fine, I'd talk to J. in the morning, now I'm going back to sleep. Three hours later, I wake up, text J. and tell him the new schedule, he says that's fine, he's picking up a tent and would meet me at the hotel. The new meeting time is 3:30 to be at the pier at 4, since the boat leaves at 5. That's the only boat in the afternoon. I think, too bad we'll be there so late (and sun sets here around 6:30), but it's ok since we'll have the whole next day on the beach before returning.

That afternoon we arrive at the pier just before 4 to discover that the boat left an hour and half early because the waves were too big. Hm. After getting over my disorientation at having a ferry leave so incredibly ahead of schedule, we decide to take the alternate route. "Really adventure!" laughs Jerome. We pile back into our taxi and head over to the other wharf near Sasa (the cargo shipping port). This is the pier I think my family has never seen. As we walk through all the vendors' stalls in the ramshackle market, passing by all the fish, backpacks and vegetable stalls, the stares and "hello!"s we got made me guess that we were an unusual sight in this corner of town. Even Jerome, the most at home here of us all, looked out of place with his big backpack and 2 white girls in tow (ok, we're both mixed 1/2 filipina, but to just about everyone here we look white. Only other mixed people recognize us). We were crossing the gulf to one end of Samal Island on the ferry (think wooden outrigger boat with benches and seating for around 100). Once there, three of us waited behind while Jerome arranged for 2 motorcycles to take us across the island. He knew he could get a better price if he set up the deal speaking Visaya and if they didn't know that 2 of their passengers were white. So then we took a 45 minute ride across the island on some paved, some dirt roads. Some were roads which J. uses to train for the mountain biking segments of his adventure races -- just so you get an idea of their not-so-smooth quality. I had a great time, shot some bumpy video & digital stills with one hand while balancing myself and my pack with the other. A&G were a little less at ease, but they were game. Along the way we had to dodge a dog, a pig, a chicken, and a number of children in school uniforms. (No, they weren't travelling together.) The bikes dropped us in Kaputian, where we then hired a small banka (outrigger boat) to take us from Samal to Talikud Island -- just under 1/2 hour away. Barely wide enough for 2 people to sit side-by-side, A&G sat in front of the driver and J&I sat behind, where I had the tiller running under one arm and both of us propped our feet up on the sides of the boat to avoid the exhaust from the motor. Finally landing at Isla Reta, we happily discovered that we had the entire beach to ourselves. On the downside, that meant that no one was at the restaurant and we were really hungry, but J. somehow found the staff in the town, and we (eventually) had dinner. It took a long time I think because in addition to both inihaw and paksew fish, we ordered barbequed chicken. Native chicken. There's every chance that it was still alive when we ordered it. Prep takes a long time. After dinner, we wrapped up our night swimming in warm-to-me-cold-to-jerome tropical waters off a white sand beach under a full moon, then drinking and talking until our (especially my) heads were nodding.

I admit sleeping in a tent placed directly on sand is a little hard. Sand seems so much more pliable when you're not on it for very long. But it was fine. I like being in a place so warm you need no sleeping bag. Just crash out on the floor of the tent. In the morning I set up a hammock under the magnolia trees and watched the dawn fishermen. (Tip to future tropical travelers: never hang your hammock under a coconut tree. Too much danger of coconuts falling on your head). There followed a lazy day on the beach trying to get a tan to make you all jealous, and more swimming. We walked into the little town to the market (a long sectioned tiled counter with faucets outside where a woman had seafood for sale on one end and someone was doing laundry near the other), bought a fish caught that morning & had it cleaned and scaled, and had it grilled for lunch, served up with chicken soup we bought from another vendor. Somehow the boys arranged with a guy from the town to have another banka pick us up at the end of the day. Just before we left, several boats arrived with weekend visitors to Isla Reta so we had to share the beach. The real benefit for me from this was getting to try some "native goggles" offered to me by one of the boatmen. These are swimming goggles with eyecups carved out of wood and fitted with small pieces of glass, tied behind the head with string secured with a piece of rubber that looked like it was cut from a thong. They actually worked pretty well, although the eyepieces were very small and therefore rather painful. I loved trying them out and may cause a future boatman some amusement by asking to buy his goggles to bring home with me.

The return trip was completely uneventful. All boats were where they said they would be, we had no difficulties changing from one to another, and got home safely. All in all, a fine trip. Especially since I happen to love it when we have to improvise. I'm what they call here a "cowgirl", meaning that I can adapt and I am fine getting dirty. Tomorrow I go diving in a spot that's only a 15 minute boat ride away. Tonight I'll be ballroom dancing. This is what my life is like here. So do you understand why it's hard to resist all the pressure I'm getting to live here? Of course, I'd have to work if I were here. But the white sand beaches, coral gardens, dances, and unexpected adventures would still be here anytime I could slip away.

ah.... back in Davao.... only problem is I'm having a little stomach issue. Don't know if it's the major lack of sleep because of the competition stuff, the flu that's hit both Arvin and my aunt, or drinking some non-bottled water in Manila (water in Davao is fine, Manila is not). The combination of the three is not great, regardless, and so I spent last night mostly hiding out in my room. This morning, started to get a little stir crazy so I headed out and ended up here writing to you all.

a word about traffic

I haven't been to Bankok or Calcutta, but I'm told that the traffic there is worse or at least similar to Manila. Manila is a crazy place. It's a big city, but it's not "organized" (Arvin's apt expression). It's very hard to get around without a car or without spending a huge amount on taxis, but I wouldn't want to drive there if I had a car. I would be scared, really, just remarkably annoyed. Snora should never come here. They do have some traffic lights, but they're not always followed. Traffic cops are at some major intersections which really help, but again, they aren't timed to each other like lights can be so there's no such thing as traffic "flow." On the other hand, everyone assumes that no-one is following the rules, so they're all pretty cautious. The rate of traffic-related fatalities is far lower here than in the states, I believe.

Davao is not much better about rules, but at least there are fewer cars. It's hard to describe really what it's like on these roads. Crossing the street is a test of will, but you soon learn that drivers will stop or at least slow down so that you can cross. Additionally, there aren't really sidewalks to speak of in some areas so there's a feeling of general chaos. What you'd see if you were here:

vehicles
private cars -- mostly darkened windows so there's no way to see if the driver sees you or not.
jeepneys -- open air public transportation cars who will slow down if you need to cross, but who will also try to get you to hop on for a ride making for a bizarre experience where you're trying to both ignore them and pay close attention to what the heck they're going to do while you're trying to cross in front of them. The farther away from the city you get, the more likely you are to see people riding on the roof and hood of a jeepney, along with all kinds of baskets, bags, and construction materials, maximizing the use of all vehicles in areas where they are scarce. Riding on jeepneys here makes me laugh when I get back to the states and people say "there's no where to sit" when riding the F trains if they can't sit without touching someone.
taxis -- everpresent, these little white cars are divided into air-con and non-air-con (with and without air conditioning). For pedestrian purposes, this only means that the windows would be open or not which might affect their ability to hear you yell (which no one does. This is not NYC). Generally, the taxi drivers are good, albeit scarily aggressive, drivers. I remain fascinated by the decor on the inside of the taxis. The current trend seems towards fist-sized stuffed animals suspended on strings and hanging from suction cups in the front window. Last time I was here, everyone was sporting the seven dwarves from snow white -- sometimes, however, 7 of the same dwarf. I'm sad that they've been replaced by pokemons and the powerpuff girls.
pedi-cabs -- dirtbikes (motorized) with a sidecar attached. The side car is originally designed for two people (making three with the motorcycle driver), but I've seen as many as 5-6 on one. This renders the already non-agile vehicle nearly totally unmaneuverable, although it is slow and easy to dodge as a pedestrian. These vehicles are not in the very center of the city, but exist primarily on the slightly less trafficked outer areas.
tricycles -- bicycles with a sidecar attached. These are mostly seen on the side of major roads, and they provide a way into all the housing areas after people transfer from jeepneys. They are slow and cumbersome and I mostly feel really badly for the young boys who are pedaling so hard in this tropical heat so that people carrying groceries or returning schoolchildren don't have to walk. Their main impact on traffic is in becoming objects which cause private cars and jeepneys to suddenly swerve across lane lines (providing they were in a lane in the first place).
motorcycles/motocross bikes -- lots of these. They're small and easy to walk around.
skylabs -- everywhere in rural areas, not in the cities, skylabs are usually 250cc motorcycles/dirtbikes with a board strapped perpendicular to the seat, enabling additional riders to sit on the ends of the board, increasing the maximum load from 3 or 4 to 5 or even 7 riders. Riders are on the handlebars, behind the driver, on the tank, and on the ends of the board. Riding on one is an amazing experience. You should try it. They earn their name from the cross shape created by the board, a shape reminiscent of the sky-lab.

Adding to the foreign pedestrian's panic is the incessant blaring of horns from cars and jeepneys. Some jeepney horns are very musical, designed to get your attention so you jump on. Mostly, though, you hear 2-3 toots from all vehicles every 10-30 feet warning someone (another vehicle, a pedestrian, a potential anything that might possibly be entering the road at an intersection) that a vehicle is coming and it intends to take the right of way. I ended up taping some of this if you are interested in hearing it. It's like nothing else. Perhaps the greatest oddity is that I get used to it.

Mass for Fr. Finster
In a very different vein, tonight I speak at a mass for a priest who was a great friend to our family and who just passed away. It's odd, in my California life, to think about haivng something like a "family priest," or even a priest who is a friend of the family. But there are two or more parts to my life. In the future, I'll talk about catholism and all that. Tonight I must get ready for mass.

OK, I spoke too fast about the rain in the last post. We got drenched here on Saturday day and night, resulting in more floods (baha!) throughout Manila. I was inside most of the day at the dance competition, so the only major impact on me was not being able to get to a salsa club I wanted to check out.

The competition is finally over, and I'm very happy about that. Arvin & Gwyneth got to the semi-final round before they were eliminated. Getting them to compete meant talking each of them out of quitting twice in the 3 days, supporting them individually, and then working their butts to improve the dance. Bottom line, 3 months is not enough time to train someone from nothing to champion level, but she did a darn fine job. The competition itself was quite trippy. Not quite Strictly Ballroom, but close. Like that without the proper funding so it was in a gym, not a hotel. But the politics were there, and the sense of what was Right and Wrong was everpresent. I'm intrigued by the ballroom scene in much the same way I'm attracted to mini-golf courses and monster truck races. The commitment to an alternate aesthetic is quite incredible to me.

Last night went to Music Box, which features a gay boy and two trans girls singing and making jokes, reminding me of my HIV prevention buddies at their most sparkly and viscious humor. Quite a crowd there. Some of the "cool" in-crowd (straight) who are there to watch and occasionally sing, some tourists, some regular gays, and a wealthy older gay man and his pack of 3 young beautiful boys. Made me appreciate SF even more (as if I need that), where roles were not quite so rigid, and where there are options that are not quite so seedy. (Yes, some are more seedy, but that's also true here)

Tonight I go ballroom dancing, which is far more intense in Manila than in Davao. I'm excited to see it. Tomorrow I happily return to Davao, where I can walk, be outside and get to the beach.

super quick update all. I'm in Manila, and it's dry. Seems the typhoons have headed north and assaulting Japan. Maraming baha up there, walang dito.

Down here all floods are emotional -- I thought there was drama in the regular dance scene, but it's nothing compared to competition. I'm absolutely exhausted with trying to support (read: keep sane) my friends Arvin & Gwyneth. They compete tomorrow for a national ranking in ballroom dancing. Every day brings fun new surprises & tensions, which, as their coach, I work to heal. This morning they're happy and dancing well. I'm at the mall, looking for material to redo her costume so it fits and she can dance (bad bad tailoring!). Then I will recolor her shoes. I feel like I'm back in the theater doing costume crafts again. Well, I was talking about the fact that I missed it.

That's it for today. If it's not about dance, I don't know about it.

election day

yesterday most of the businesses in the Philippines were closed for elections. I happen to think it's not such a bad idea trying to encourage people to vote by releasing them from work. On the other hand, some people just took it as a holiday.

Last night, when I was having dinner with Jerome, I noticed his forefinger was all purple around the nail. Turns out they stain your finger with ink after you vote so that you can't vote twice. Rigged elections have been a major issue here in the past, and all kinds of measures have been taken but this was a new one on me.

I talked to my Tita Juliet's driver about elections, and he said he was boycotting them because everyone was so corrupt. He had nothing but bad things to say about all the people who were running. This appears to be a fairly universal reason to avoid elections. Others are just resigned to it, and try not to elect "politicians" -- that word is synonymous with "corrupt." They're voting for wealthy businesspeople instead, figuring that they're more savvy and less likely to be tempted by bribes. Of course, in the U.S. right now, "wealthy businessman" is not necessarily a compliment...

Probably the most curious thing was the Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief saying that the day was generally peaceful. This article in the Manila Bulletin caught my eye because the headline in the Philippine Star was "75 dead in election violence." It's all a matter of perspective I guess. They've had far more violent election days in the past, the PNP put the estimate at 38 dead, and figured that was a good day.

The PNP reported a total of 56 election-related violent incidents in the course of the campaign since March 31 where a total of 38 persons were killed and 20 others wounded. Among those killed in the list of the PNP report were 13 incumbent elective officials, 13 candidates, 11 civilian supporters, and one AFP personnel.

So who am I to say? Reformers here are sometimes popular (the vigilante mayor Duterte for one), sometimes unpopular or with mixed reviews (like the mayor of Tagum, a businessman, who accepted no negotiations on tax rates for individuals, saying instead that even rich people had to pay the full amount. he was respected & appreciated by some, but lost his re-election bid.) Change comes slowly, and corruption is systemic here. Reminds me of the HIV virus, always changing and everyone has their own ideas about treatment -- each one which comes with harsh side effects.

My family stays well away from all that, preferring the neutral zone which is a good business decision for hotel owners. Me? I'm just going to pack up my camera and head off to flooded Manila to videotape dance instructors in action. My next post may be more waterlogged. Dexter -- how do I say "flooded" in tagalog?

ok. my arm has recovered and I'm ready for more. I'm now waiting, impatiently, for a call from my friend who want to take me out windsurfing, hoping to get me hooked enough to be part of the women's team he's pulling together here for a competition in December. Who knows? I tried once in Alameda with Paul & Tina and loved it. I'm likely to enjoy it even more when the water is warm... In the meanwhile, just practicing dancing in my room, alternating between tango, rhumba and hiphop. My body will be refined in nothing if I try hard enough. I really have to gain some muscle. I'm not liking the way I look or my weakness right now. Doesn't help that weight is a normal topic of conversation here, so everyone who sees me says (directly before or after "hello"), "you look fat" or "you gained weight" or "what happened to you? just eating eating all the time?" This includes all relatives, the dance instructors, even the hotel staff. I'm not lying. Those in doubt can ask my brother.

resolutions I'm making while I'm here: I will start going to the gym regularly to go climbing again. I will get a tagalog tutor when I return. I will dance tango a lot more. Can you all help me stick to them? Help improve improve my ability?

My english is breaking down. My accent is getting chaotic. My visaya and tagalog remain maddeningly nonexistent. Examples of words that everyone prefers in tagalog instead of english:

malapit -- near
mahirap -- difficult
mainit -- hot
mayabang -- boastful
magaling -- good

now, given that I tend to remember things using the first letter and the number of syllables, I'm pretty much screwed when it comes to adjectives in this country. I will continue to try. These words, at least, are clear to me. Mag practice practice makes perfect.

...propping up my sore left arm so I can type this out. Yesterday's kayaking was excellent...but tough for a once-strong-now-weak person like myself. It was about 11 kilometers (nearly 7 miles) round-trip from Santa Ana Pier across the bay to Samal Island. Kind of nutty being out on the open water in a cargo shipping lane with a current and lots of wind on my first real kayaking effort. But that's kind of how I end up picking up new activities, anyway. And I have to confess that I really liked it, despite my current muscle aches, raw spots from having my arms rubbing against the vest, blisters on my thumbs, sore wrist and the general inability to use my hands properly for several minutes after letting go of the paddle. It was fun. I also think it's a pretty good match for rock climbing since it requires fairly strong hands and strengthens the pulling muscles in your shoulders. (Did I just pick up a new sport?!)

Today no scuba diving. One hazard to becoming friends with the dive shop is that you're the first requested to be bumped when a group of regular tourists shows up and rents all the tanks. Ok, lang. I'll dive mid-week with a smaller group.

Arvin and Gwyneth have asked me to be their coach for their dance competition in Manila. I think it's an unreasonable amount of faith in me, particularly since I'm not a ballroom person, but I'm flattered and they need support so I said yes. I'm bringing in Senya, a friend of mine who was the national ballroom champion a couple of years in a row, to help me and actually suggest technical stuff.

I've now located more of my friends here, remembering that yes, I really did live here for a year. Still, it's a country fairly free of sarcasm, so I'm missing you all. I did have a major revelation yesterday: this is an almost completely mullet-free environment! I realized this when I saw one, and it startled me.

This and other things, like fresh mango and fish, make it so tempting to just stay.... oh but this time I have work back home. oh well.

ahh... I'm now finally kicking in various activities that bring me here to Davao. Tomorrow I'll go sea kayaking and Sunday I'll be diving. Monday night a group of us might go to a beach to spend the night. It's warm enough here that we probably won't even bring tents, just hammocks or even just beach towels.

Last night went to a new place, Jack's Ridge, and ate catfish and gambas in an open air restaurant high on a hill overlooking Davao's city lights. Then took a stroll down to check out the bar and the coffee house up there. They have rooms available for 500-600 pesos (about 10-12 dollars) a night. I might just have to take one for a night so I can wake up to greet the dawn from a hilltop while sipping a cappucino. (yes, espresso has arrived in Davao).

In one aspect, Davao is far more civilized than San Francisco. There's an abundance of 24 hour places here. After Jack's Ridge, a group of friends and I went out to a beach club where we walked the sand, drank, and sang karaoke until it was unreasonably late. As you all know, I am continuously frustrated by SF's early shutdown so late night walks on active streets here make me really happy. Granted, a few too many of these places feature really scary karaoke (some just a machine and TV in a shack on the sidewalk with mic cord stretched across the sidewalk to reach the drunk guy sitting on small plastic stool who's imagining he's Neil Diamond), but there's also 24 hour barbecue and beach resorts, along with a wide choice of indoor restaurants. No diner-only 24-hour choices here!

I've also given in to Asian culture and now have a cell phone here so my friend can text me and we can meet up. You know I wasn't doing well without my own phone... now I just have to learn a large array of abbreviations so I can be really cool and not reveal my total text-virgin state.

Off to have merienda with my lola (i.e. midafternoon snack with my grandmother). More later when I'm more tan!

I don't know you if you've been hearing about it where you are, but Manila has been assaulted by typhoon rains for the last couple of weeks. Streets are flooded, people are travelling by boat and rafts made of styrofoam blocks, and at least 18 people have died. Here in Davao, the skies have been clear every day. The weather patterns here are just odd. But I certainly won't complain.

Life here so far has been about dance and seeing old friends. No wanderings outside the city yet except the day at the beach, but I'm getting a little antsy. I think a diving day must happen this weekend at the minimum. Doesn't help that my friend Jerome is out training every day for an adventure race this weekend in Marbel. He's a crazy man that I can't keep up with -- out mountain biking or running every day either at 6 a.m. or at 4 p.m. to grab 2 hours or so of daylight with a minimum of heat.

Did I tell you that the sun rises at 6 a.m. and sets at 6 p.m. every day all year long? This equator stuff is nutty... of course, it's very confusing to the people here when I explain our daylight savings time and shifting sunset times etc.

My dancing is getting better. I'm working on the tango a bunch. Had a private with a really great teacher out of Manila.

Davao is in an interesting spot right now. Mayor Duterte (see the article about him in Time from June) has done an impressive job making the city safe. Two months ago, he also imposed a new "smoking control law", and for the first time, there are non-smoking areas in restaurants, and some places where no smoking is allowed at all. The airport is also finally expanding its runways to handle larger planes so it can be truly international. A growth spurt is on the way. I hope the economic recovery is soon.

I'm getting distracted now with the love songs playing on the computer next to me doing battle with the sounds of Age of Empires or some other computer game. Besides, I think it's high time I get myself out to the poolside to deepen this tan...

Oh, in case you haven't see it, here's some info about my family's hotel and about Davao in general... come visit!

256K!



ahhh.... the joys of internet cafes! I'm now surrounded by tech savvy teens in a 24 hour net cafe (what a happy insomniac am I!) where I can blog away at 35 cents/hour. Something for me to do when I can't go to the beach anymore because it's after hours.



Davao is as wonderful as always. A nutty combo of America and decidedly local, I'm so happy just wandering around. And it's all perfectly safe here. So I'll stop reporting on that, and just fill you on the good stuff.



Yesterday, my father, stepmother, aunt and I went to a small beach resort called "Pacific's Little Secret" on the Samal side of Talikud Island. It was so calm and gorgeous there. White sand is so normal here that when I showed a photo from SF to one of my local friends, he asked, "why is the sand brown?" I had to explain that all sand is brown in the states, and that beaches were cold. Pacific's Little Secret's secret is not just the beautifully artistic houses overlooking the beach or protected water... I think the big secret is their cook, Francine. We had the most overwhelmingly fabulous meal yesterday: barbecued tuna jaw, steamed prawns, kinilaw (raw tuna with vinegar, radish and onion), barbecue chicken, eggplant & coconut milk salad and local asparagus. I was so excited about the asparagus! They've just started growing it here and it's really yummy. Small tender stalks, almost like asparagus shoots. Later they served fried banana for merienda (a customary mid-afternoon meal) which you just have to taste to understand how good that can be. (Sorry to all my Salvadorean friends -- I think the Pinoy version is far superior!).



The night before I went ballroom dancing, as I will tonight as well. My friend Arvin is trying to teach me international style for latin dancing. I think it's funny so I'll do it. He has agreed to be in my documentary on the Dance Instructors (DIs) and will get the others to join in as well. As luck would have it, he's competing in the national championships this month while I'm here so I'll head up to Manila mid-trip to be there and tape that. Maybe I'll get some of the Manila DIs in as well. I hear that some of the women up there have gone as far as to buy houses for their DIs -- their husbands are not too happy about this turn of events. Time for me to film!



I checked in with the dive shop and will go out soon. Coral Garden, my regular dive site when I was here last, has been protected for the last couple of years and I'm eager to see if there's been much improvement. I will report out after I go.



Thanks for the emails and such. I'll be much more able to respond now that I don't have to wait (literally) 5-10 minutes for a page to load!

Landed!

Here in Davao, at the family hotel. The air stepping off the plane was warm and comforting, like a down blanket. I find it just fine. All my travels here were very uneventful -- happily so. I'm very pleased to report that it's not as necessary to avoid the Manila airport anymore. Domestic and international are together, no more Mr. Toad Wild Rides to make a connection in cross-town taxis. The flight to Davao from there was also just fine. It's about 600 miles, basically the same as SF to LA, only with maybe 6000 islands between instead of I-5. Arriving at the hotel was a nice coming home, seeing people I haven't seen for a long time. All the workers are very friendly to me -- somehow it's important to me that they like me. They work so hard for our family and are willing to stick it out through our troubles.

My father and step-mother have been here for over a week, and they report that they only real trouble they had was with a waiter at the Royal Mandaya hotel. He was a klutz and spilled beer all over everything and was lame about cleaning it up. That seems to be the extent of the civil unrest right here. I'm happy to say that Davao seems just like ever, only growing.

The ISP here is remarkably slow, so I might be a slacker replying to emails until I can find a better internet cafe. That's all I'll write for now. Have to get ready for dinner at my favorite restaurant. Grilled seafood and garlic rice, followed by fresh mango... yummmm....

Hong Kong layover

I've landed safely in Hong Kong. 13 hours of flying, 17 hours total airport/plane time. I now acknowledge there is no wisdom in packing when underslept and fresh off the throes of the high-fashion pride parade. I was misleading in my last post. I actually did not realize my mistake when it came to the scuba mask, fins, etc, until after I had closed everything up and shortly before the shuttle was to arrive. I now consider that a major mistake. I know I'll be able to borrow/rent in Davao, but I do so love my mask. Saw some great discovery programs on the plane about sharks and am now itching to get to a shark dive. I don't know of any on Mindanao, so it might have to wait for the next trip.

Overall doing ok. Didn't sleep much on the plane, had slept 1/2 hour the night before boarding, 5 hours the night before that, 4 hours the night before that, 6 hours on Friday night. Seems fitting to read "Sleep Demons: An Insomniac's Memoir" at this point. It's quite wonderful and may give all you normal sleepers a peek into a world a little more like mine. Melatonin & wine didn't work on this flight. I slept a bit, but mostly read and watched a movie, then got all worked up about the sharks. I definitely did not know enough about Oceanic White Tips. Can anyone point me to info about them and Pilot Whales? Or just the Pilot Whales?

The HK airport is lovely, with huge windows overlooking the mountains. I had a dollar translation scare when checking in. I was told that I had to pay $140 in insurance to Philippine Airlines, which seemed outrageous. Actually, this sum was later corrected to $40, meaning $40 in Hong Kong dollars, $5 US. That kind of surcharge I'm prepared for. Odd to deal with the same word for different currencies. Especially since the Brits use the Pound. Anyone know how HK started using the dollar? At least the PAL agent had glitter fingernails, a kero-keroppi pen, and photo stickers all over her stapler. Made the whole transaction far more fun. Here (and in Japan) my penchance for decorating everyday objects seems pretty tame.

Happily able to correct my minidisk supply shortage -- nice electronics store here. Had to keep my hands off extra cameras.

religion of coincidences, meditation #3
1) This morning at SFO, my friend Alfredo just happened to be taking a flight to Mexico with basically the same departure time as my flight, so we hung out. 2) One woman in supershuttle with me was taking the same flight to Hong Kong as I was, and was continuing on to the Philippines. She called me an angel sent to help her since there were no porters to wrangle with her large balikbayan box & I ended up loading her cart for her. 3) Mariko, a swing dancer from Tokyo who I met this weekend, strolled by as I was checking in -- on her way to check in for a flight back home. That's 3 in no time at all. What a way to leave SF.

Now off for some food. I'll be in Manila in 5 or so hours, but won't (probably) check in again until tomorrow sometime in Davao.

15 minutes until the shuttle gets here. I'm all packed, and bringing just a ridiculous amount of stuff. Usually I'm a light packer, but something snapped in my head and I had a shoe panic, and am not willing to bet on buying too many things in my size there and just packed like a squirrel preparing for winter. Multiple activities don't help. I have 3 specialized shoes: 2 for dancing, 1 for rock climbing. I decided against bringing my own scuba equipment, and will just rent there. May regret that when it comes to the mask, but something had to go. That and the 10 or so minidisks that I seem to have misplaced.

Wish me happy travels. When next I write, I'll be only 7 degrees off the equator.

OK. I should not be writing here. I should be packing. I'll get to it shortly. Yes, I'm leaving in a matter of hours.

The U.S. State Department has not issued any new travel advisories, and the word out of the Philippines seems increasingy calm.

My friend there just asked me to be part of an adventure racing team in mid-July. I'm now -- even more -- feeling how out of shape I am. Even reading about the race made me feel heavy and slow. Hopefully I'll be able to overcome this. But it's cool to be asked to be in one of these races. This from my friend who just completed the ecochallenge in New Zealand. If you take a look at the gallery photo labeled "prerace excitement", you'll see him in the last, large group photo. In a yellow shirt in front, second from the right edge of the front yellow shirts with the wild hair. Pretty cool that he was in the eco challenge.

OK. Time for me to pack. I may write again before I leave in the morning.